"The message could not be clearer: editorial independence is dead at the Washington Post. Opinion editor David Shipley, recognizing this fact, has already resigned rather than oversee this ideological narrowing. ...
Democracy dies in darkness? No, it dies when billionaires decide they want their media properties to serve their personal ideological agendas rather than the public interest."
#WashingtonPost #Bezos #MediaFailure #capitulation #EconomicElites #billionaires #Musk #Trump
/4
"The audacity of claiming that free market ideas are 'underserved' in American media is staggering. Has Bezos somehow missed the existence of The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Bloomberg, Fox Business, CNBC, and countless other outlets that have spent decades championing free-market capitalism?"
#WashingtonPost #Bezos #MediaFailure #capitulation #EconomicElites #billionaires #Musk #Trump
/3
"In a stunning announcement today, Jeff Bezos declared that The Washington Post's opinion section will now exclusively focus on 'personal liberties and free markets.' …
Today's announcement takes things to an entirely new level of billionaire meddling."
~ Parker Molloy
#WashingtonPost #Bezos #MediaFailure #capitulation #EconomicElites #billionaires #Musk #Trump
/2
readtpa.com/p/jeff-bezos-just-…
With its new "free markets and personal liberties" mandate, democracy dies not in darkness but in billionaire ideologyParker Molloy (The Present Age)
Interview: "Federal workers are staging mass protests to Save Our Services"
“They’re trying to immiserate the working class, & they’re doing it through the federal workforce.
"It’s about gutting the services that create a safety net... because the more miserable we are, the easier it is for them to exploit us.
“The whole public sphere is at stake.”
~Chris Dols
democracynow.org/2025/2/20/dog…
#USPol #SaveOurServices #Trump #Musk #Oligarchy #GeneralStrikeNow #ResistFascism .
Amid the indiscriminate dismantling of the federal government by the Trump administration’s Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, federal workers, thousands of whom could lose their jobs, are fighting back.Democracy Now!
Don't EVER tell me public pressure doesn't work
Yet another reversal:
" #Trump administration reinstates funds for lawyers representing 26,000 children in immigration court, days after halting it with little explanation.
👉🏼The decision came after supporters flooded Congress members with letters of support👈🏼, but advocates still worry the program may eventually lose funding..."
latimes.com/california/story/2…
Trump administration reverses itself on a program providing lawyers for 4,000 migrant children in immigration court.Rachel Uranga (Los Angeles Times)
Keep 'em coming
Via Kyle Cheney:
JUST IN: A judge has enjoined #Trump's effort to block federal funds from going toward grant recipients who engage in DEI practices.
The judge says the orgs are likely to succeed on claims that this is viewpoint discrimination, among other issues
Bývalého amerického prezidenta Donalda Trumpa si Rusko pěstovalo přes čtyřicet let, řekl listu The Guardian bývalý agent KGB Jurij Švec, který byl vyslán v osmdesátých letech do USA jako špion.Alex Švamberk (Novinky)
Trump Official Destroying USAID Secretly Met With Christian Nationalists Abroad in Defiance of U.S. Policy
—
Now one of the most powerful people in the U.S. government, Peter Marocco’s turbulent tenure during the first Trump administration sheds light on his current efforts to dismantle the American foreign aid system from the inside out.
propublica.org/article/usaid-p…
#News #USAID #Trump #USPolitics #Diplomacy
#AP Says #Trump Blocked Access Because It Didn’t Rename #GulfOfMexico As #GulfOfAmerica
The #AssociatedPress said it was blocked from covering Trump‘s #ExecutiveOrder signing today because it declined to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America in its editorial style standards.
#law #FirstAmendment #FreePress #journalism #whitewashing #WhiteSupremacy #WhiteNationalism
deadline.com/2025/02/ap-trump-…
The Associated Press said it was blocked from the White House today because of the AP style guidance on using Gulf of Mexico versus Gulf of America.Ted Johnson (Deadline)
Fascinating idea by @doctorow about the trade wars inspired by #Trump
Meeting a #Tarrif with a Tarrif isn't going to help #Canadians however what Cory suggests here could:
canadaland.com/podcast/1100-a-…
More importantly, it might hurt the backers of the chaos coming out of the USA since Jan 20th.
/c @pluralistic
Hitting America where it hurts: right in the dongle.Canadaland
Elon Musk to reporter: “We post our actions to the DOGE website. All of our actions are maximally transparent. I don’t know of a case where an organization has been more transparent than the DOGE organization.”
Here’s the doge.gov website IN ITS ENTIRETY. It’s literally a blank page!
#Musk #doge #Trump #coup #uspolitics
ProPublica has identified nine additional Musk-affiliated staffers. A former staffer at Boring Company now has an official role at DOGE in the Executive Office of the President. A former X employee now works in the General Services Administration.
propublica.org/article/elon-mu…
#News #ElonMusk #DOGE #Government #USPolitics #Trump
Musk and his lieutenants are reshaping the government and its mission with the blessing of President Trump. ProPublica has confirmed the names and roles of more than 30 staffers affiliated with the billionaire.ProPublica
Poll result: Who loves Elon in government?
On the question of who wants "Musk to have less influence over government spending & operations," nearly half of respondants said yes.
However, "nearly three-quarters of Republicans surveyed said Musk & DOGE should have 'a lot' or 'some' influence."
motherjones.com/politics/2025/…
#DOGE #Musk #Trump #USPol #PollResult #CapturedState .
Imagine that: Americans don't want an unelected billionaire running the government.Mother Jones
„Have Mercy, Mr President!“ Das sagte die mutige Bischöfin Anfang Januar 2025 im Gottesdienst an den amerikanischen Präsidenten gerichtet. Habe Erbarmen! Mr President schaute die Predigerin mit fin…Horst Heller
Unbelievable
#ElonMusk’s US #DOGE Service are feeding sensitive data into #AI software via #Microsoft’s #cloud
#Musk’s US #DOGE Service have fed sensitive data from across the #Education Dept into #ArtificialIntelligence software to probe the agency’s programs & spending…. The AI probe includes data w/personally identifiable info for people who manage grants, & sensitive internal financial data…
#law #security #InfoSec #CyberSecurity #NationalSecurity #Trump #TrumpCoup
washingtonpost.com/nation/2025…
Unless you don’t mind Elon Musk, and his team of unelected, illegitimate techbros sifting through all your social security personal/financial data, CALL YOUR THREE CONGRESS MEMBERS TODAY AND TELL THEM TO STOP DOGE!
Find your House Member: house.gov/representatives
Find your two Senators:
senate.gov/senators/index.htm
#musk #elonmusk #doge #trump #AI #government #techbros #hackers #coup #congress #senate #resist #fightback #america #USA #US #USAID
This is very welcome news in the face of Trumpist depredations of US public data.
lil.law.harvard.edu/blog/2025/…
"In recent months the Harvard Law School [@harvard_law] Library Innovation Lab [@harvardlil] has created a data vault to download, sign as authentic, and make available copies of public government data that is most valuable to researchers, scholars, civil society and the public at large across every field. To begin, we have collected major portions of the datasets tracked by data.gov, federal #Github repositories, and #PubMed...."
#DataGov #Libraries #OpenData #Preservation #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Email leaked to Ken Klippenstein telling NOAA employees that their course material can’t contain ANY of the following words in order to remain complaint with Trump’s executive order on DEI.
The party than ran on freedom and speech and avoiding censorship now actively censoring people.
Every word breaks my heart… but I want to pause on the inclusion of “empathy”.
The fact that they can’t use the word empathy is a perfect encapsulation of this whole administration.
#uspoli #noaa #trump #dei #deia #censorship#fascism #freedomofspeech #inclusion
The Nicaraguans who keep Wisconsin’s dairy farms, restaurants and factories working are sending home their most prized possessions, bracing for potential mass deportations.
“We don’t have much, but what we do have is important.”
propublica.org/article/immigra…
#News #Immigration #Immigrants #Trump #USPolitics
The Nicaraguans who keep Wisconsin’s dairy farms, restaurants and factories working are sending home their most prized possessions, bracing for potential mass deportations. “We don’t have much, but what we do have is important.”ProPublica
A few days after he was sworn in as 47th US president, he claimed Greenland “wanted to be with us” and said he believed it would eventually become part of the US.
“I think the people want to be with us,” Trump said when asked about the island in the press room on board the presidential plane.
Neslyšel jsem něco podobného o Podněstří? Donbasu? Ukrajině? Až mi bude 75, budu taky takovej idiot, nebo k tomu potřebuju ještě jiné dispozice?
#Putin #Trump #idiots #psychopaths
Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The IndependentEUROPE SAYS (EUROPESAYS.COM)
WASHINGTON — A federal district judge on Tuesday granted an administrative stay in a case challenging the Trump administration’s planned freeze of federal aid, pausing the plan for a week and setting a hearing for further arguments Monday morning.Daniel Barnes (NBC News)
My wife and many of her friends are sociologists. She forwarded me this text that one of her friends found. Apparently it was also written by a sociologist. I found it helpful. Maybe you will too.
"As a sociologist, I need to tell you that your being overwhelmed is the goal.
1/ The flood of 200+ executive orders in Trump's first days exemplifies Naomi Klein's "shock doctrine" - using chaos and crisis to push through radical changes while people are too disoriented to effectively resist. This isn't just politics as usual - it's a strategic exploitation of cognitive limits.
2/ Media theorist McLuhan predicted this: When humans face information overload, they become passive and disengaged. The rapid-fire executive orders create a cognitive bottleneck, making it nearly impossible for citizens and media to thoroughly analyze any single policy.
3/ Agenda-setting theory explains the strategy: When multiple major policies compete for attention simultaneously, it fragments public discourse. Traditional media can't keep up with the pace, leading to superficial coverage.
The result? Weakened democratic oversight and reduced public engagement.
What now?
1/ Set boundaries: Pick 2-3 key issues you deeply care about and focus your attention there. You can't track everything - that's by design. Impact comes from sustained focus, not scattered awareness.
2/ Use aggregators & experts: Find trusted analysts who do the heavy lifting of synthesis. Look for those explaining patterns, not just events.
3/ Remember: Feeling overwhelmed is the point. When you recognize this, you regain some power. Take breaks. Process. This is a marathon.
4/ Practice going slow: Wait 48hrs before reacting to new policies. The urgent clouds the important. Initial reporting often misses context
5/ Build community: Share the cognitive load. Different people track different issues. Network intelligence beats individual overload.
Remember: They want you scattered. Your focus is resistance.”
UPDATE: it seems that this Threads post is the origin of the above sentiment: threads.net/@itsjenniferwalter…
While I don't love linking to Threads, I think it's important to give credit where credit is due.
As a sociologist, I need to tell you: Your overwhelm is the goal 🧵 1/ The flood of 200+ executive orders in Trump's first days exemplifies Naomi Klein's "shock doctrine" - using chaos and crisis to push through radical changes while people are too d…Threads
A vehicle of the Ukrainian White Angels police evacuation team rolls down a street in Pokrovsk on Jan. 25 as Russian troops advance close to the city. (Genya Savilov / AFP via Getty Images)
Ukraine strikes drone storage facility in Russia's Oryol Oblast and destroys 200 Shaheds, General Staff reports. Ukrainian Air Force units and Defense Forces struck drone storage facilities in Russia's western Oryol Oblast on Jan. 26, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported on Facebook on Jan. 26.
Russia launched over 1,250 bombs, 750 drones at Ukraine during Trump's first week in office. Russia fired 1,250 aerial bombs, over 750 attack drones, and 20 missiles at Ukraine in the past week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Jan 26.
Zelensky appoints Ground Forces Commander as head of Khortytsia Group. President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi, Commander of the Ground Forces of Ukraine, as the head of the Khortytsia Operational Strategic Group on Jan. 26.
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Ukrainian troops avoid encirclement in Velyka Novosilka, military says. Ukrainian troops successfully withdrew from some areas to avoid being encircled but fighting is ongoing around the village, which lies around 15 kilometers east of the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
Russia bombs itself with 'smart bomb,' Astra reports. The bomb, a UMPB-250, was found in a village in Belgorod Oblast, but there were no casualties or damage.
Explosions reported in Khmelnytskyi, Ivano-Frankivsk amid drone attack, apartment building damaged in Dnipro. Several explosions were heard overnight on Jan. 27 in the western Ukrainian cities of Ivano-Frankivsk and Khmelnytskyi as Russia launched a drone attack on Ukraine.
Fiber-optic cable between Latvia and Sweden significantly damaged in Baltic Sea, investigation underway. An underwater fiber optic cable belonging to the Latvian State Radio and Television Broadcasting Center (LVRTC) was significantly damaged on Jan. 26, reportedly due to external impact, according to LVRTC representative Vineta Sprugaine.
Washington orders USAID to suspend projects and funding in Ukraine, Suspilne reports. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), one of the largest official aid agencies in the world, has been told to stop projects in Ukraine following a 90-day foreign aid freeze imposed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Ukrainian media Suspilne reported, citing sources in the agency.
Ukraine war latest: Ukraine strikes drone storage facility in Russia's Oryol Oblast, General Staff reports
Ukrainian Air Force units and Defense Forces struck drone storage facilities in Russia's western Oryol Oblast on Jan. 26, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported on Facebook on Jan. 26.
Photo: Andrew Roth/ The Washington Post via Getty Images
Potential encirclement in Velyka Novosilka prompts questions about last-ditch withdrawal strategy
Located east of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, the vital road-junction village was once home to 5,000 people. It’s now facing a similar fate to other Donbas strongholds, where Ukraine's delayed withdrawals resulted in avoidable casualties.
Photo: Wolfgang Schwan/Anadolu via Getty Images
Transfer of Air Force personnel to infantry continues despite scandal
The Ukrainian military command's plan to throw high-skilled Air Force personnel into the infantry was said to be halted when the practice gained nationwide attention, followed by a condemnation from the president.
Photo: Sameer Al-Doumy / AFP / Getty Images
How the Invictus Games help wounded veterans adapt to life after war
Nearly 400,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been injured and are unable to return to the front line. After coming back from the battlefield or captivity, they are often left to deal with their physical and mental trauma alone.
Photo: Invictus Games: Team Ukraine
Lukashenko poised to secure 7th term in Belarus 'sham' election. Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko has reportedly secured 86.82% of the vote, according to preliminary results announced by the country’s Central Election Commission.
Belarus releases American citizen amid controversial election. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio identified the U.S. citizen as Anastassia Nuhfer, who was detained in early December 2024.
Hungary blocks EU statement condemning Belarus election as undemocratic, RFE/RL reports. Without unanimous support from all 27 EU countries, EU chief diplomat Kaja Kallas issued her own statement, declaring that the January 26 election in Belarus was "neither free nor fair."
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"On Thursday, Republican U.S. Rep. Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma introduced a House Resolution to condemn [Bishop Mariann] Budde’s sermon. … Twenty Republicans co-sponsored the resolution."
~ Brian Kaylor
#Trump #Republicans #BishopBudde #ReligiousFreedom #ReligiousLiberty #WhiteChristianNationalism
/1
wordandway.org/2025/01/25/afte…
Amid the vitriol against Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde from Trump and other Republicans this week, a few proposals stick out since they attempt to empower the federal government to decide which religious beliefs should be allowed or not.Jeremy Fuzy (Word&Way)
"A Public Religion Research Institute study from the Fall revealed the strong connection between the role of patriarchy, attitudes on child-rearing, and religiosity that directly predict one’s support for both Trump and violent authoritarianism. We are all now hijacked by powerful men like Donald Trump, whose parental figures were mostly vindictive, cruel, or absent."
~ Wajahat Ali
#Trump #Republicans #patriarchy #misogyny #abuse #violence #masculinity
/1
thelefthook.substack.com/p/who…
In recent weeks, notable conservatives have revealed their perversions and damaged personalities as they refer to Trump as America's daddy who has returned to punish and correct a disobedient nation.THE LEFT HOOK with Wajahat Ali (The Left Hook with Wajahat Ali)
Tomorrow will be a dark day for many.
For disabled, marginalized, LGBTQ+ folks & women. For anyone who still cares about others
The disability community saw this coming. It’s important we listen & understand that labelling people as expendable for 5 years leads nowhere good
Since November we’ve watched hate win over and over again.
We’ve witnessed the emboldening of those who think they’re superior to others.
We’ve seen an increase in misogyny, bigotry, ableism, racism & discrimination.
Disabled people begged the Left to pay attention. We begged you to keep masking, to push for clean air, to demand accountability from government.
We implored you to realize that our lives are not less important than your ability to go out for brunch.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of people on both sides of the aisle decided that mitigating COVID was “too hard.”
They accepted repeat infections as inevitable so they wouldn’t have to adapt their lives in any way.
They threw away people like me.
We let hate win. And now we’re going to see the consequences of that decision.
Disabled people weren’t surprised in November, we’ve been living in what feels like an alternate reality for years.
But I suspect others are about to feel our pain.
If you’re feeling scared or angry right now, know that you’re not alone. There’s a community standing with you.
I don’t know exactly what comes next, but I do know we have to keep up the fight.
disabledginger.com/p/how-did-w…
#disability #COVIDisAirborne #covidisnotover #uspol #ableism #eugenics #trump #pandemic #longcovid
Disabled people have been warning others for nearly 5 years that eugenicist Covid policies would lead to a rise of fascist, racist, bigoted, misogynistic hatred. It's here now. So what’s next?Broadwaybabyto (The Disabled Ginger)
Donald J. Trump is a Convicted Felon!
Trump Sentenced to ‘Unconditional Discharge,’ Will Enter Office as Felon
Judge Juan Merchan gave the president-elect a penalty-free sentence for his hush-money crimes
Solely because of the election results, Trump escaped justice for his 34 felony convictions!
A black eye for justice in America!
#AureFreePress #News #press #headline #GOP #Politics #uspolitics #uspol #Trump #BreakingNews #Breaking
rollingstone.com/politics/poli…
Donald Trump was sentenced an "unconditional discharge" by Judge Juan Merchan on Friday in his hush money case, and will enter office as a felon.Nikki McCann Ramirez (Rolling Stone)
Never forget this report, that Trump and accomplices would like you not to know the details of...
Select January 6th Committee Final Report and Supporting Materials Collection | GovInfo
Fascism, now available in space grey.
theverge.com/2025/1/3/24335290…
#apple #trump #timCook #neoliberalism #capitalism #fascism
Apple CEO Tim Cook is donating $1 million to President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration committee, according to Axios.Jay Peters (The Verge)
Das sollte man in Bezug auf die Nutzung von kommerziellem #SocialMedia und #Kommunikation nicht unbeachtet lassen, vielleicht auch besonders in #digitaleKirche:
#Meta unterstützt #Trump Amtseinführung finanziell mit großer Summe:
bbc.com/news/articles/c8j9e1x9…
#Instagram #Facebook #WhatsApp #FediKirche
It appears to be the latest attempt by the Meta boss to build a closer relationship with the incoming president.Liv McMahon (BBC News)
Donald #Trump Controls a Publicly Traded Company. Now He Will Pick Its Regulator.
—
There have been internal concerns that Trump Media could be misleading investors, a source said. But with its largest shareholder about to be president, experts doubt the SEC is up to the job of investigating Truth Social’s parent company.
#News #Government #SEC #Regulation #USPolitics #TrumpMedia #Politics #Business #Finance #DonaldTrump
What a wild viewpoint, undocumented immigrants explaining why they are happy Trump won expressing jealousy of the support asylum seeking immigrants are getting. They encouraged their kids to support Trump and even fly MAGA flags and bumper stickers 🫠
But don't they understand undocumented means they are the illegals meanwhile asylum seekers get support because they are using a LEGAL path to immigration? Trump wants both types gone.
propublica.org/article/immigra…
Across the U.S., Latino immigrants who’ve been in the country a long time felt that asylum-seekers got preferential treatment. “Those of us who have been here for years get nothing,” said one woman from Mexico who has lived in Wisconsin for decades.ProPublica
For some reason people fleeing the sinking #Twitter / #X ship for #BlueSky don't seem to be aware of the fact that crypto bros at #BlockchainCapital bought a huge stake in the company just a few weeks ago. Like these are basically the same crypto bros who just helped #ElonMusk buy Twitter. They might even be literally the same people (I strongly suspect they are but I'm too lazy to check). Either way #BlockchainCapital was co-founded by #BrockPierce, who also brought you #Tether, AKA the company that Trump's transition team chairman manages $120 billion for. Pierce is also a friend of the #Netanyahu family.
You don't have to take my word for it. Here's the official press release: bsky.social/about/blog/10-24-2…
Moving to BlueSky is not an escape. Growing a base there is just putting in a bunch of work to create a platform that will be co-opted by crypto bros as soon as X breaks in half.
p.s. crypto bros (#a16z) also own #Substack
#crypto #cryptocurrency #bitcoin #USDT #Trump #DonaldTrump
